DOUGLAS DC-3 OH-LCH “Hotelli”

Our plane was built by Douglas Aircraft Company in Santa Monica, California and completed on Christmas Eve 1942 as
DC-3A-453 C/N 6346. Intended for Pan American Grace Airways as NC34953, she was promptly taken to military service on Dec 27 1942 and became C-53C-DO s/n 43-2033.

She served in the US Air Transport Command, North Atlantic Wing and was probably based at Presque Isle, Maine until transferred in November 1943 to the European Wing, where she is believed to have served in personnel transport duties. In October 1944 she was transferred to the 8thAAF until the end of war in Europe.

From storage in Oberpfaffenhofen, Germany, she was bought by the State of Finland and registered on Jun 19 1948 as OH-LCH and made her first commercial flight for Aero Oy on Jul 21 1948. She logged a total of 22137 hours until dismantled for spare parts on Dec 15 1960, but was rebuilt as a freighter with a large cargo door and re-registered as OH-LCH on Jun 25 1963 for Finnair Oy (ex-Aero Oy). On Apr 1 1967 she made Finnair’s last scheduled DC-3 passenger flight.

Having logged 28826 hours she was sold to the Finnish Air Force on Mar 5 70 and received call sign DO-11. The Air Force retired DC-3s in 1985 and DO-11 was sold to Airveteran Oy on Jan 15 1986 to become OH-LCH once again. She is flown regularly during summer season and currently her log shows about 34000 hours.